1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an apparatus and a method of stripping thorns from rose stems without damaging the stems.
2. Description of Related Art
Handheld metal grippers are used to strip thorns from rose stems. The grippers are placed on the stem just beneath the flowering bulb and then pulled downwardly along the stem. The grippers strip off the thorns in the process. Since rose stems are not of uniform diameter, portions of the outer surface of the stem itself are typically stripped off along with the thorns by the handheld metal grippers. The stem then becomes susceptible to disease through the break in its outer surface.
Various plant stem cleaning devices are available conventionally for stripping thorns from rose stems. These devices have exposed rotary components with rotating brushes on a common axle that effect the cleaning. The person using the devices generally must hold the rose stem in position as the rotary components turn so that the brushes may strip the rose stems of thorns. It has been the experience of some that these devices generally blunt the thorns but do not completely remove them. Also, proper positioning of the rose stem requires some dexterity on the part of the user and tends to slow down the cleaning process.
While conventional devices are mounted over a trash can to receive the stripped plant material, large shields are required about the device and above the trash can to block the stripped material from falling onto the floor or elsewhere away from the trash can. The shields must be large to permit access for proper positioning of the rose stems during the stripping process.